Earlier today we explained how HTML5 will change the way you use the web, including how HTML5-supported offline access handles basically the same functionality as Google's Gears browser plug-in. It seems that Google's well aware of this fact, too, and the Los Angeles Times is reporting that Google is "letting the sun…

Writing emails while offline can help keep you on top of things, especially while on the go. As of today, Offline Gmail allows you to add attachments to an email while you're offline, bringing essentially the full offline experience to Gmail.

Gmail's offline access feature gives you your recent messages while you're on a plane or otherwise unconnected. Now you can get speedier offline access, or deeper archives, by customizing just how long to store messages.

Windows/Mac/Linux: Most developers did a bang-up job preparing their extensions for the Firefox 3.5 update, but on the Firefox 3.5 release day, one very popular extension didn't make the cut: Google's browser plug-in, Gears.

Last time we compiled our must-have Firefox extensions, it was two years (and one browser version) ago. Our new list keeps some, tosses others, and remains our go-to, Grandmaster list of the best Firefox add-ons.

Google Apps users may be noticing an "Offline (beta)" link in the upper-right corner of their Google Calendars. That's right—Google's rolling out offline browser access to appointments, and, for once, Apps users get first dibs.

When you enable Offline Gmail, the new service doesn't actually download all your messages—just about 10,000 of them. And Gmail has its own method of determining which messages it stores for serious email fiends.

Today Gmail Labs released a new feature that bridges the gap between desktop and web-based applications like never before: Offline Gmail. You can now access your Gmail from your browser any time, whether or not you're online.

Zoho Mail, a web-based email client long in private beta in the Zoho office suite, is now publicly available. Those with Zoho accounts and Google Gears installed will notice that you can hit an "Offline" button to download a pre-set number of sent mail and inbox messages, and reply to them for sending when you're back…

If your love for Safari has kept you from making the jump to Google Gears, you're in luck: a beta version of Gears for Safari has just been released. It's a Mac only beta, so expect bugs if you download it. Thanks Josh!

Windows/Mac/Linux (Firefox or IE7): PassPack, an online manager for both your computer and web site passwords we've previously mentioned, has created an offline version using Google's Gears add-on. That alone makes PassPack a more useful tool, but you can also download PassPack onto multiple computers, online or off,…

Windows/Mac/Linux: Google's offline-enabling browser plug-in, now simply called "Gears," has been updated to 0.3 with full support for Firefox 3. In addition to the general convenience of having one less extension to pull out Firefox 2 for, Gears adds a dialog to create a nice-looking desktop icon for most sites that…

If you've stored your slide deck online in Google Docs, you don't have to worry about the internet connection going out when it's time to get onstage. The big G completed its rollout of offline access to spreadsheets and presentations using the Google Gears Firefox extension/Windows application. You can't edit the…